Jack Connick has started writing a monthly column for Northwest Dive News. Discusiing underwater photography, Jack plans to concentrate on cold-water dive photography, but I'm sure tropical divers will learn lots, too. Fortunately, he plans to re-print the articles on his blog, so check in often if you don't subscribe.

In his first article, Jack discusses the importance of experience and not engaging in unnecessary task-loading. He also goes over important questions to ask yourself before making the often-expensive leap into underwater shooting. What do you want to do with your photos? Where are you going to be shooting? How much can you really afford to spend? These are some of the questions Jack walks you through.

For this installment of This Is Why We Dive, we're going to check out one of Dave "Seatrekker" Morgan's shots.

This image of a Rhinopias is striking for several reasons. First, the color is bold and unusual. Second, I love that Dave has managed to capture the creature in action -- check out that gaping mouth! Third, the fish has two little parasites on it, both near its left eye. (Can you see them?) Fourth, I appreciate that Dave took the time to provide a little description on the picture's Flick page.

Got striking pictures? I know you do. Please add them to Divester's Flickr pool.

For a more "traditional" review or to peek at some of the images in the book, check out Wetpixel. The Art of Diving is available through Amazon.co.uk for £13. It's also available in German. The perfect coffee table book, and the perfect justification for why you simply must go diving this weekend, pick up a copy for yourself and you'll see that The Art of Diving is the most magical, most beautiful, most insightful book ever written about scuba diving.

In addition to revealing its new Stylus 770 SW, today Olympus announced its new 7.1-megapixel Olympus SP-550 UZ. UZ stands for "Ultra Zoom," and in this case, they ain't lying. The UZ features a 18X optical zoom lens (28-504mm equivalent in 35mm photography), which gives users the ability to shoot telephoto, wide-angle and macro all in one. The camera also features a 2.5-Inch LCD; Dual Image Stabilization to ensure blur-free images; High-Speed Sequential Shooting; and Full Manual and Automatic Control. The camera is compatible with the Olympus-made PT-037 underwater housing, depth-rated to 130 feet.

The SP-550 UZ will be available in March 2007 for $500. If you're looking for more details, check out Imaging-Resource's hands-on preview of the nifty little camera.

There are a smattering of clubs across the globe that bring underwater shooters together, but there hasn't been a good one in New York. Until now. Now, there's one in Manhattan.

The New York Underwater Photo Society (NYUPS) aims to bring together underwater photographers and videographers from the tri-state area to share and learn about the world of underwater imagery. Each month, NYUPS will host workshops and speakers (think: underwater photographers, filmmakers, marine biologists, explorers, and adventurers). In 2008, NYUPS plans to host photo expeditions to some of the world's most biodiverse hot spots, and it'll even launch an international underwater photo and video competition/festival. Sounds like a busy club! You know why I'm sure it'll succeed? Because of the people involved, which include Jason Heller, Larry Cohen, Robin Dyleski, Pasquale Pascullo, and Wendy Heller.

The Society's first meeting is in April. Check the website for details concerning time and place.

Today, Olympus announced the new Stylus 770 SW, a 7.1-megapixel, 0.8-inch wide camera that you can as deep as 33 feet -- without a housing. Want to dive deeper than 33 feet? Grab a (soon-to-be-released) PT-035 underwater housing and descend to 130 feet. The 770 SW also boasts a 2.5-inch LCD, four custom underwater scene modes, and a built-in manometer. No, a manometer doesn't measure how "manly" you are. Rather, it measures and records water and air pressure when each image is taken, and stores the information within each picture's digital file, so you can easily recall exactly how deep you were when you saw that pair of nudibranchs.

Available in sporty red and blue, expect to pay $380 for a 770 SW in March. For more specs, check out the always excellent DPReview.

What can I say? I'm a sucker for the bright colors of a nudibranch. And when there's a pair of them in the same shot...I get weak.

Breic captured this great shot of two Spanish shawl nudibranchs at Palos Verdes. I love the bright colors of the nudis' shawls, and I love the drama of them looking like they're on fire. Beautiful shot. I wonder if the one on the left is chasing the one on the right. Imagine that race.

Do you have pictures that make you weak? Please share them with us at Divester's Flickr pool.

Want to go diving in June but don't know where to go? If you're an underwater shooter, you might want to head to Bonaire. The crew at Reef Photo has organized a trip to the island, and they're bringing their brains along with them (which is quite the opposite of what I do when I go diving). Reef's staff will be available for one-on-one hands-on help with camera gear and techniques during the week. Moreover, award-winning shooter Rand McMeins will also be on the trip, providing inspiration and advice.

Reef will be carting A/V equipment to the island to facilitate the sharing of the day's images every evening. Warning to the competitive: this is not a competition, but allows divers to share what they experienced throughout the day. Heads-up for the competitive: they are sponsoring a "best shot" contest at the end of the week. If you're interested, the package runs $1025 and includes:

• 8 days/7 nights in a fully-equipped apartment
• 7 days rental vehicle
• UNLIMITED Boat Diving
• NITROX fills for shore diving
• American style breakfast buffet daily
• 50% Off Food & Beverages at the Pool Bar
• Welcome Drink
• Manager's Rum Punch Party
• Airport transfers
• All Government Taxes

If you've never been on a dive trip dedicated to finding and diving with sharks, here's your chance: Wetpixel is running two charters to the Bahamas in July, 2007. The first trip (July 10-21) is for the purpose of finding and shooting oceanic white-tips. Successful in 2006, there's no reason to think that they won't find them this year -- as well as (possibly) tiger sharks, reef sharks, dolphins, and more. Amazingly, on board the boat will be Eric Cheng, Tony Wu, and Alex Mustard. Be nice, and they may give you some photo pointers.

The second trip (July 23-31) is a "classic" tigers-and-dolphins trip, combining a traditional shark expedition with dolphin experiences and the chance to see lemon sharks, reef sharks, and *maybe* even hammerheads and bulls! For the lowdown on what these trips are like, check out Eric Cheng's past trip reports. I know 2 people registered for this particular trip, and they're super-excited about it.

Participants will travel with Jim Abernethy, aboard the M/V Shear Water, a small liveaboard leaving from West Palm Beach, Florida. Space is limited, so book soon. For more information about the trips, or for registration information, head over to Wetpixel.

Recently, SeaLife announced their new 6.1 megapixel digital camera, the DC600. Featuring a 2.5" LCD; 12 land modes; a "Color Booster" Sea Mode; a Shark Mode with "virtually no shutter lag"; and a 12X zoom, the tiny camera -- which uses a rechargeable lithium battery and an SD memory card -- takes some pretty good pictures.

The camera's rubberized, shock-resistant housing is depth-rated to 200 feet. Expect to pay somewhere between $500 for the basic rig (just the camera and housing) and $1300 for the Maxx set (which includes two external flashes, a wide angle lens, and a carrying case).

[Via UwP 34]

Some people love diving in kelp forests!

Steven Trainoff, Ph.D., captured this fun photo of his wife, Gretchen, frolicking in the kelp forests of the Channel Islands. Dark and moody, I love how it looks as though she's in a forbidding, mysterious forest, a la Hansel and Gretel. Swim, Gretchen, swim!

If you have any mysterious underwater photos, we invite you to add them to Divester's Flickr pool. Can't wait to see them!

Over in Wetpixel's forums, a photo assistant for Scuba Diving Magazine posted an open call for entries for the magazine's upcoming "Wrecktacular" issue. Spotlighting wrecks from all over the world, the forum-post claims that, "If you have compelling wreck photos and are interested in submitting them for possible publication, please contact us." The editors will accept submissions via disc or e-mailed hyperlinks -- just be certain the images are clearly identified by destination and wreck name. Unfortunately, all submissions need to be recieved by Tuesday, January 16th. But don't worry: you've still got the weekend!

For contact information -- or to see the tentative list of wrecks the magazine will cover -- head over to Wetpixel. This could be your big break!

Stephen Frink

Don't forget that you can travel with Frink on one of his many upcoming trips. From Raja Ampat, to Australia, to PNG, it looks like he's going to have an exciting 2007!

Previously:

• Short Stephen Frink Interview
• 10 Questions for...Stephen Frink
• How-To: Photograph Divers Underwater